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Deepak (Jeetendra) is a truck driver who gives a lift to a famous singer Aasha (Reena Roy) when her vehicle breaks down. They become friends. He is already in love with Mala (Rameshwari), whom he marries. Aasha wishes him well calling him "dost" (friend), even though she has fallen in love with him. Deepak has an accident, and everyone believes that he is dead.

His grieving mother tells a pregnant Mala to go away. Mala goes home to her father, but he dies. Upset with everything in her life, she jumps from a bridge into the water. She is saved by members of a temple community, but finds that she lost her sight. She gives birth and names her daughter Deepamala, combining her and her husband's names.

Her husband turns out to be alive. He comes home and finds his mother overjoyed to see him. She tells him that Mala committed suicide. He becomes depressed. Aasha re-enters his life and helps him overcome his depression. They get engaged. They become acquainted with Deepamala, now a little girl, selling little God statues on the street. They are completely enchanted by her, even though they don't know that she is Deepak's daughter. Aasha meets Mala and tells her they'll pay for her eye operation, so she can regain her sight. Aasha also invites her and Deepamala to the wedding.

After she regains her sight from the operation, she goes to Aasha's wedding and is shocked to see Deepak. She quickly leaves, not wanting to disrupt Aasha and Deepak's lives. Mala's friend (Girish Karnad) tells Deepak that Mala is alive and that Deepamala is his daughter. Aasha cancels the wedding, calls him "dost" (friend), and tells him to go and reunite with his wife and daughter, which he does. Aasha goes back on stage permanently to sing her signature song "Shisha Ho Ya Dil Ho, Aakhir Toot Jata Hai," which translates into "Whether it's glass or a heart, it will inevitably break."

Director-producer J. Om Prakash enlivened Aasha by having his camera crew secretly shoot without the boy's knowledge as his beloved grandson — Hrithik Roshan, who grew up to become one of India's most acclaimed superstar actors. In 1980, he was a child aged 6, who danced spontaneously while visiting grandpa's set during a song sequence. As J. Om Prakash later recounted the events:

"The song was to be shot on Jeetendra. Hrithik was on the sets, and he liked the interlude music very much and started dancing. I had asked my cameraperson and crew to be ready. I asked Hrithik if he liked the song, and he said, "Yes, Deda, it is lovely music." I replayed the music and he started dancing, and we shot it without his knowledge. When the music got over, the entire studio applauded excitingly. The remaining part of the music was to be shot in the same way with Jeetu. After Jeetu's shot was over, he came to me and said, "For God's sake don't shoot a single more shot in this film with this boy, otherwise the audience will hoot my performance!" That was a remark that came from Jeetu (Jeetendra, the male lead of Aasha and a major Hindi film star)."[2]